Missouri Suicide Prevention Coalition Academy
About the Suicide Prevention Coalition Academy
The Suicide Prevention Coalition Academy is designed to help community prevention coalitions implement sustainable, evidence-based suicide prevention efforts. The academy is a year-long cohort starting with a 2-day, in-person event and monthly virtual, follow-up Community of Practice sessions.
Using the Community-Led Suicide Prevention Toolkit, participants will learn skills for effective suicide prevention including accessing and using data for suicide prevention, strategic planning, coalition building and maintenance, and more.
The objectives of the Suicide Prevention Coalition Academy are to:
- Provide coalitions interested in adopting or expanding suicide prevention efforts with the skills and information necessary to be successful
- Assist in developing strategic plans and implementing strategies for effective suicide prevention at each participating coalition
- Create collaborations between community coalitions, local Prevention Resource Centers, and other statewide agencies to provide mentorship and support
- Please see the Coalition Eligibility and Application page for additional information on who should attend the Academy
The Suicide Prevention Coalition Academy is coordinated by Missouri Partners in Prevention, the Missouri Suicide Prevention Network Community Support Coalitions Subcommittee, and funded by the Missouri Department of Mental Health. Curriculum for the Academy was developed by the Education Development Center (EDC) using the Community-Led Suicide Prevention Toolkit.
Click here to download a brief overview document of our second iteration of the Suicide Prevention Coalition Academy, held in August 2024 with 7 participating coalitions in our second cohort!
Click here to download a brief overview document of our first iteration of the Suicide Prevention Coalition Academy, held in August 2023 with 7 participating coalitions in our first cohort!
Community-Led Suicide Prevention Framework
The Community-Led Suicide Prevention Framework aims to support communities with best-practice tools related to 7 key elements:
Unity
Identifying leaders/partners and building capacity, creating a shared vision, working with other organizations
Data
Accessing systems data, gathering information on community context, using data to assess progress and make changes
Planning
Strategic planning process, using data to choose goals and objectives, putting the plan into action
Fit
Assessing community readiness, involving diverse populations, incorporating community context and culture
Integration
Combining multiple, evidence-based strategies, facilitating efforts with diverse settings and populations
Communication
Communicating internally and externally, ensuring safe suicide prevention messaging, developing strategic communication campaigns
Sustainability
Maintaining sustained partner commitment, implementing policy and practice change
Timeline for 2025 Cohort 3
- Applications and nominations open September 2024
- Applications due January 31st, 2025
- Notification of selection will occur in February 2025
- Attend Academy Prep Webinar and complete readiness assessment between March-May 2025
- Attend the in-person, 2-day Coalition Academy, June 2nd and 3rd, 2025 in Columbia, MO (travel/accommodation costs will be covered by project funding)
- Apply framework and Academy information to suicide prevention efforts and attend monthly virtual Community of Practice (CoP) sessions from August 2025 through May 2026)
- If desired, access continued support through the ongoing Coalition Academy Community of Practice (June 2026 and beyond)
Coalitions Participating in 2024 Cohort 2
- Taney County Suicide Prevention Network
- Iron County Health Coalition
- Northwest Missouri Suicide Prevention Coalition
- Maryville Partners in Prevention Suicide Prevention Subcommittee (located at Northwest Missouri State University)
- Webster County CommUNITY Partnership
- Lafayette County Veterans Suicide Prevention Coalition
- EBJ Callaway Community Suicide Prevention Coalition
Coalitions Participating in 2023 Cohort 1
- Christian County Suicide Prevention Network
- Greene County Suicide Prevention Network
- Howell County Suicide Prevention Network
- Mental Health Awareness Coalition (Butler County)
- Missouri S&T Prevention Coalition, Health and Well-Being Committee, and the STEP UP! Committee
- St. Louis Regional Suicide Prevention Coalition
- Stone County Community Health Coalition
